Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe talked to Mark Mulder's agent, Gregg Clifton. Clifton said, "He's ready to go for any team right out of the chute." Clifton shot down talk that Mulder would not be ready in April.

11:50am: The AP reports that Wood gets $10MM in 2009 and $10.5MM in 2010. If he finishes 55 games either year, the Indians' option vests and they pay Wood $11MM in 2011. Check out this Chicago Tribune article for comments from Wood and Mark Shapiro.

9:09am:Kerry Wood signed a two-year $20.5MM contract with the Indians that has a vesting club option for a third year.

He also looks at what he deems the other six viable options left: John Smoltz, Trevor Hoffman, Brandon Lyon, David Weathers, Chad Cordero, and Eric Gagne. Hardly an impressive crop. Kornacki lists Lyon and Weathers as the most attractive options, unless the Tigers can luck out and pry Smoltz away from Atlanta. Smoltz is a Michigan native.

Detroit isn't interested in Trevor Hoffman, can't afford Brian Fuentes, and they tried for Kerry Wood but missed. The Tigers feel they could have landed J.J. Putz, but the Mets swooped in with a last minute offer and won his services.

Knobler also wonders if the Tigers could release Dontrelle Willis if he doesn't show something in Spring Training.

9:41am: Looking for a Kerry Wood update? The AP is reporting that he took his physical yesterday, and team doctors are taking a look. They say it may still take a few days before the official announcement.

WEDNESDAY, 4:42pm: Castrovince says Wood is headed to Cleveland for a Thursday physical. He believes the two-year, $20MM deal will include a third-year option of some variety.

TUESDAY, 11:17pm: Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune reports Wood reached an agreement with the Indians on what is believed to be a two-year deal with a vesting option. It's unclear if Rogers is offering up new information here or just summarizing what we know.

7:44pm: John Perrotto says the Indians signed off on Wood's medical reports and will likely announce the signing today or tomorrow.

5:36pm: The AP says the Indians are close to a two-year deal with Wood.

5:01pm: Peter Gammons says the Indians are making progress with Wood but still talking to alternatives.

4:21pm: Yahoo's Gordon Edes says an Indians source expressed confidence that the team is close to signing Wood, probably to a two-year deal with a vesting option. The AP agrees.

3:12pm: Castrovince says his Wood report "appears to be legit." Multiple sources have confirmed to him that a deal "could be cemented soon." Wood would still have to pass a physical though.

The Cardinals are a serious bidder forA.J. Burnett. They also pursued him back in 2005. The Blue Jays would get the Cardinals' #19 pick next June if they sign him. However, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch recently wrote that the Cards "are not expected to pursue the free agent pool's bigger fish: C.C. Sabathia, Ben Sheets, A.J. Burnett and Derek Lowe."

The Mets have Jon Garland on the radar. Jerry Crasnick likes Garland as a fit for the Cards.

The Brewers haven't decided to increase their offer to C.C. Sabathia at this time, and won't consider it until they meet with the big lefty. A meeting is scheduled; Sabathia may grill the Brewers about their other offseason plans. Rosenthal thinks Kerry Wood might make the most sense among free agent closers.

9:55pm:Ken Rosenthal says the Mets will meet with K-Rod, Fuentes, and Kerry Wood within the next 24 hours. They won't be making simultaneous offers to all three. Instead, they'll probably start with an offer to Rodriguez as Heyman mentioned.

8:35pm:According to SI.com's Jon Heyman, Mets GM Omar Minaya is meeting with Francisco Rodriguez tonight and is expected to make an offer. Internally, the Mets have discussed offering a three-year deal, possibly with a fourth year vesting option.

Rosenthal doesn't see Mark Teixeira signing with the Nationals, even for the rumored ten-year, $200MM contract. He's got better options in the Angels, Red Sox, and Yankees. Scott Boras managed to get Alex Rodriguez a ten-year deal with a losing team in 2000 when he signed with the Rangers, but Rosenthal doesn't forsee a repeat.

The Indians are waiting on the Mets' closer decision to make a decision of their own. Once New York signs or trades for a closer, the market will likely collapse. The Mets are preparing simultaneous offers to Francisco Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, and Kerry Wood.

The Brewers could spend big money on a closer once they hear from Ben Sheets and C.C. Sabathia. If the Brewers can somehow retain both, they won't have money to spend on a closer and would likely have to trade Prince Fielder.

The Mets are desperately trying to unload Luis Castillo so they can make a run at Orlando Hudson. They're having no luck though, even in trying to swap him for another bad contract. The Rangers rejected a swap of Castillo for Vicente Padilla.

The Marlins are getting several inquiries on Jorge Cantu and Dan Uggla. They don't plan to trade either, though if the Giants were to offer Jonathan Sanchez for Cantu, the Marlins would jump at the chance.